Anyone who has ever seen a cat or dog taking a sauna in the back seat or trunk of a car, for example at a highway rest stop, knows exactly what torture animals can be subjected to during a long journey. And if we arrive at an accommodation together with the pet, of course it doesn’t matter what kind of options are available for them.
There is still room for improvement
According to Ágnes Forsthoffer, the head of the Balaton region of the Association of Hungarian Hotels and Restaurants, domestic accommodations still have room for improvement when it comes to welcoming guests with pets.
Unfortunately, at Lake Balaton, we cannot boast of how many pet-friendly accommodations or destinations there are. There are also very few dog beaches.
– said Ágnes Forsthoffer, who is also the managing director of Hotel Margaréta in Balatonfüred.
According to him, it would be important to develop in this area, because the demand for traveling with small pets is increasing.
Speaking about the experiences of their own hotel, they highlighted that there are very few problems with the owner not being responsible for keeping the animal in the hotel. As the culture of traveling with a pet has improved in recent years, most people arrive with beautiful, well-groomed dogs, fully equipped to care for the animal, and take care of their pet.
The most typical problem can be the dog’s anxiety, if the owner does not properly assess whether the dog can be left alone in a strange room.
We always pay special attention to the fact that we can reach those arriving with dogs by phone if we hear a “complaining sound” from the room. The rooms with dogs are located on the ground floor, near the reception, so we can keep an eye on them.
According to their experience, however, there is a good chance that a cat will spend time alone in the room, so its owners can plan any program during the day, there is no need to take the little pet with them. “A large dog’s need for exercise is much greater, hiking and nature walks are ideal with them, so active pastime is necessary. If there is a dog-friendly beach nearby, such as in Keszthely, then it is worth finding an ideal accommodation near it, so that the dog does not miss out on swimming. But I think that backwaters and smaller lakes are more ideal than Lake Balaton, where dogs can enter the water more freely,” said the Balaton regional manager of the Association of Hungarian Hotels and Restaurants.
A surcharge must be paid
Of course, it should be expected that whether the holidaymaker brings a cat or a dog, this will cost extra money in the case of hotels and boarding houses.
At Hotel Margaréta, for example, guests arriving with pets are welcomed in rooms where they can disinfect the floor.
The dog-cat room always requires extra attention and cleaning, so we apply a surcharge, but this is of course much more favorable than the price of a dog boarding house
– said the manager of Hotel Margaréta.
They don’t ask for a health certificate, but they have to pay attention to the other guests, so pets can’t use the hotel’s grassy garden and restaurant either.
Among the city hotels of Danubius Hotels, all hotels in Budapest, as well as the hotels in Győr and Bükfürdő are pet-friendly
Petra Fabriczki, communications director of Danubius Hotels, told us. In general, they find that the number of people who want to relax with their dog has increased in recent years. The most characteristic of their hotels is the hotel in Bükfürdő and Helia in Budapest, where guests arrive with dogs.
Danubius also provides specially designated rooms for guests arriving with pets
The cleaning in these rooms is carried out with special care, for which we charge a daily surcharge of 25 euros/night
said the Danubius communications director.
Accommodations everywhere create their own rules for accepting animals, so it is of course recommended to check the website of the hotel or boarding house you are looking for to find out what the host expects. By the way, the pet owner’s responsibility also exists in accommodation, so we can definitely only take healthy and vaccinated animals to hotels, boarding houses or even apartments.
The communication director of Danubius Hotels said: in order to make appropriate preparations, it is worth informing the hotel about the arrival of four-legged pets already at the time of booking. “We provide guests with dogs with all useful information when they arrive at the hotel, so we prepare information and recommendations tailored to the hotel and its surroundings, for example recommending a nearby veterinarian, places to walk, dog walkers. We provide accessories, drinking water and dog snacks on request. With the declaration of consent, the owners undertake to comply with the rules of behavior and coexistence for the dog, and also declare that their pet has received all mandatory vaccinations.”
Exceptions to the hotel rules are guide dogs and police dogs that accompany their owners and help them, as well as dogs that accompany disabled guests. The details of this are regulated by a separate law (Decree 29/2009.(XII.3) SZMM). In such a case, the number of animals to be brought in cannot be limited, no surcharge can be requested for their accommodation, and the animals can also be brought into the hospitality areas.
Dog and cat boarding houses
Those who decide not to stress their pets with the trip, or who just think it is a better solution to place them in a specially specialized boarding house, can expect that in the case of a kitten, between 4,500 and 4,800 forints are charged per day for the accommodation of the little pet.
Accommodation for dogs is a bit more expensive: it varies between HUF 6,500 and HUF 7,000 per day, depending on whether the owner provides the dog’s food or requires it from the boarding house. Of course, only healthy animals free of fleas and parasites and with a valid combined vaccination can be brought to boarding houses that accept small pets.
Viktória Kecskés, the founder and manager of the Kutyapszichólogos boarding house, told our newspaper: with them, HUF 7,000 for every started day, which includes door-to-door delivery, feeding and supervision. The length of time the owners keep their pets is extremely variable, from a few days to years, they have had examples of everything. Of course, there are many more animal lovers looking for a place for their pet during the summer. He added: there is a great demand for such boarding houses, because of course it is not always possible to arrange for the dog to stay with the owner. Not only on vacation, but also when renovating an apartment, it may happen that your pet has to temporarily look elsewhere.
The cover image is an illustration. Cover image source: Getty Images
Source: www.portfolio.hu
